Gibbons to appear before ethics panel on Sept. 11

Gov. Jim Gibbons will appear before a two-member panel on Sept. 11 to review an ethics complaint filed against him charging he used his position to pressure a local official to give him a tax break on a parcel of land he owns in Elko County.Gov. Jim Gibbons

The panel will look at all evidence in the case and either dismiss the complaint, or pass it along to the entire state ethics commission.

State Democrats filed the complaint against Gibbons last month after Elko County Assessor Joe Aguirre told a reporter he felt tacit pressure from Gibbons to reclassify the parcel to qualify it for lower tax rate.

The Associated Press reported that Gibbons paid $15 in yearly taxes for the undeveloped parcel after Aguirre agreed to reclassify it as agricultural land. Gibbons reportedly paid approximately $5,000 when the land was considered residential.

The hearing will feature a two-person panel: one Democrat and one Republican, Ethics Commission Executive Director Patty Cafferata told the Las Vegas Sun.

Such hearings are closed to the public by rule, but Gibbons has waived his right to confidentiality in this instance. As a result, the complaint and Gibbons' response are available on the state's website.

In his response, Gibbons called the complaint "baseless," referring to the charges as a "partisan attack on my reputation."

EARLIER on PolitickerNV.com:

• Nevada Dems file ethics complaint against Gibbons
• Tax break source of latest flap for Gibbons